Demetrious Johnson (fighter)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Demetrious Johnson
Demetrious Johnson.jpg
Born (1986-08-13) August 13, 1986 (age 26)
Madisonville, Kentucky, U.S.
Other names Mighty Mouse
Nationality American
Height 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m)
Weight 125 lb (57 kg; 8 st 13 lb)
Division Flyweight
Bantamweight
Reach 66 in (170 cm)
Style Wrestling, Pankration
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of Kirkland, Washington, U.S.
Team AMC Pankration
Trainer Matt Hume
Years active 2007 – present
Mixed martial arts record
Total 20
Wins 17
By knockout 3
By submission 6
By decision 8
Losses 2
By decision 2
Draws 1
Other information
Website Official UFC Profile
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: October 11, 2011

Demetrious Khrisna Johnson[1] (born August 13, 1986) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship where he is the first and current UFC Flyweight Champion. Johnson is currently the #1 ranked flyweight in the world by Sherdog.[2]

Contents

Early years [edit]

Johnson grew up in Parkland, Washington where he attended Washington High School and was a stand out athlete in Track, Wrestling and Cross Country. In wrestling, he would go on to place 3rd and 2nd in state his junior and senior year. He participated in Track and Cross Country to improve his cardio for Wrestling. He competed at the State Championships in Track and Cross Country as well.

Mixed martial arts career [edit]

Early career [edit]

Johnson began his career in 2007 and won his professional debut via first round KO. Johnson then appeared on multiple local shows and won his next 8 fights, including four in a row by submission. Johnson fought at the Alaska Fighting Championships in Anchorage and won via head kick KO, which earned him a deal with the WEC.

World Extreme Cagefighting [edit]

He made his World Extreme Cagefighting debut against Brad Pickett on April 24, 2010 at WEC 48 in Sacramento, California.[3] Johnson showed good kickboxing throughout, but was unable to defend the many takedowns executed by Pickett. Johnson lost via unanimous decision, though Joe Rogan stated his belief during the fight, that should the WEC implement a flyweight division (125 lbs), that Johnson would be highly effective, as his size gave him a disadvantage in the bantamweight division.

Johnson was expected to face Clint Godfrey on September 30, 2010 at WEC 51.[4] However, Godfrey was forced off the card and replaced by WEC newcomer Nick Pace.[5] Johnson defeated Pace via unanimous decision, to hand Pace his 1st ever MMA loss.

Johnson defeated Damacio Page via third round submission on November 11, 2010 at WEC 52. After Page controlled the action in the first round, Johnson was able to dicate the action for most of the second and third rounds before submitting the visibly tired Page via guillotine choke. Johnson later said, “He was basically drowning, and I was the shark that came up and got him from underneath.”[6]

Ultimate Fighting Championship [edit]

On October 28, 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.[7] Johnson faced Japanese superstar Norifumi Yamamoto on February 5, 2011 at UFC 126 in his UFC debut,[8] Johnson utilized take downs in round 1 and 2, controlling Yamamoto throughout the fight, and being rewarded with a unanimous decision victory.

Johnson was scheduled to face Renan Barão on May 28, 2011 at UFC 130.[9] However, Johnson faced Miguel Torres after Torres' opponent, Brad Pickett was forced off the card with an injury.[10] Despite breaking his fibula early in the second round from a checked leg kick, Johnson used his superior wrestling to control Torres and won a 29-28 unanimous decision victory, even though Demetrious was swept into full mount a record breaking 6 times during the fight.

Johnson fought Dominick Cruz on October 1, 2011 at UFC on Versus 6 for the UFC bantamweight title, losing by unanimous decision.[11]

Johnson was expected to face Eddie Wineland on January 28, 2012 at UFC on Fox 2[12] However, Johnson was pulled from the bout to take part in a four-man flyweight tournament to determine the UFC's first UFC Flyweight Champion.

Johnson faced Ian McCall on March 3, 2012 in the first round of the Flyweight Tournament at UFC on FX 2.This fight was the first flyweight bout in UFC history.[13] The fight with McCall went all three rounds, was turned over to the judges' score cards and announced as a majority decision win for Johnson. Later, in the post fight press conference, Dana White announced that the athletic commission made a mistake when scoring the match and that officially the bout was a split draw.[14][15]

A rematch with McCall took place on June 8, 2012 at UFC on FX: Johnson vs. McCall.[16] Johnson won the fight via unanimous decision to progress to the final round of the tournament.

Johnson faced Joseph Benavidez in the finals of the UFC Flyweight Tournament on September 22, 2012 at UFC 152. Johnson would make history in a closely contested fight with nonstop action fought at a frenetic pace by defeating Benavidez via split decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) to become the inaugural UFC Flyweight Champion.

Johnson fought John Dodson on January 26, 2013 at UFC on FX 3.[17] Dodson managed to match Johnson's speed and also dropped him twice with left hands, but as the fight went on the champion took control and almost finished Dodson in the last seconds of the fifth round. Johnson eventually won the fight via unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 48-47) in a bout that earned both participants Fight of the Night honors.

Johnson was expected to face John Moraga on April 13, 2013 at The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale.[18] However, Johnson was forced out of the bout with an injury and Moraga was pulled from the event as well.[19]

The bout with Moraga has been rescheduled and is expected to take place on July 27, 2013 at UFC on Fox 8[20]

Personal life [edit]

Johnson had a harsh childhood; having been born premature, he was raised by his deaf mother and an abusive stepfather. Johnson has never met his biological father, “I’ve never seen a picture of him, not a glimpse, nothing.” The main thing that has helped him move on from his past is his wife, Destiny Bartels. He says "she is the best thing that has ever happened to me and without her, life would be incomplete." They were wed May 11, 2012, in Hawaii.They are now expecting they're first child together which is planned for July in 2013[21]

Championships and accomplishments [edit]

Mixed martial arts [edit]

  • Inside MMA
    • 2012 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year

Mixed martial arts record [edit]

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 17-2-1 John Dodson Decision (unanimous) UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Dodson 02013-01-26January 26, 2013 5 5:00 Chicago, Illinois, United States Defended the UFC Flyweight Championship; Fight of the Night.
Win 16-2-1 Joseph Benavidez Decision (split) UFC 152 02012-09-22September 22, 2012 5 5:00 Toronto, Ontario, Canada Won the inaugural UFC Flyweight Championship; Won UFC Flyweight Tournament.
Win 15-2-1 Ian McCall Decision (unanimous) UFC on FX: Johnson vs. McCall 02012-06-08June 8, 2012 3 5:00 Sunrise, Florida, United States UFC Flyweight Tournament Semifinal.
Draw 14-2-1 Ian McCall Draw (majority) UFC on FX: Alves vs. Kampmann 02012-03-03March 3, 2012 3 5:00 Sydney, Australia UFC Flyweight Tournament Semifinal; Fight of the Night.
Loss 14-2 Dominick Cruz Decision (unanimous) UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson 02011-10-01October 1, 2011 5 5:00 Washington D.C., United States For UFC Bantamweight Championship.
Win 14-1 Miguel Torres Decision (unanimous) UFC 130 02011-05-28May 28, 2011 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 13-1 Norifumi Yamamoto Decision (unanimous) UFC 126 02011-02-05February 5, 2011 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 12-1 Damacio Page Submission (guillotine choke) WEC 52 02010-11-11November 11, 2010 3 2:27 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 11-1 Nick Pace Decision (unanimous) WEC 51 02010-09-30September 30, 2010 3 5:00 Broomfield, Colorado, United States
Loss 10-1 Brad Pickett Decision (unanimous) WEC 48 02010-04-24April 24, 2010 3 5:00 Sacramento, California, United States
Win 10-0 Jesse Brock KO (head kick) AFC 68 02010-02-10February 10, 2010 1 1:06 Anchorage, Alaska, United States
Win 9-0 Frankie Mendez Submission (rear naked choke) King of the Cage: Thunderstruck 02009-08-15August 15, 2009 1 4:38 Everett, Washington, United States
Win 8-0 Louis Contreras Submission (rear naked choke) Genesis: Rise of Kings 02009-06-27June 27, 2009 1 N/A Shoreline, Washington, United States
Win 7-0 Forrest Seabourn Submission (rear naked choke) Genesis: Cold War 02008-12-06December 6, 2008 1 N/A Bellevue, Washington, United States
Win 6-0 Jose Garza Submission (armbar) AX Fighting Championships 22: Last Man Standing 02008-08-16August 16, 2008 2 1:56 Lynnwood, Washington, United States
Win 5-0 Louis Contreras Submission (keylock) USA MMA: Northwest Fighting Challenge 6 02008-03-29March 29, 2008 1 N/A Tumwater, Washington, United States
Win 4-0 Eric Alvarez Decision (unanimous) AX Fighting Championships 20: March Madness 02008-03-08March 8, 2008 5 5:00 Lynnwood, Washington, United States
Win 3-0 Jeff Bourgeois Decision (unanimous) AX Fighting Championships 18: The Art of War 02007-03-08March 8, 2007 3 5:00 Lynnwood, Washington, United States
Win 2-0 Pedro Mercado TKO (punches) King of the Cage: No Holds Barred 02007-07-14July 14, 2007 1 1:25 Porterville, California, United States
Win 1-0 Brandon Fieds KO (punch) AX Fighting Championships 16: Annihilation 02007-04-28April 28, 2007 1 0:45 Everett, Washington, United States

References [edit]

  1. ^ http://boxing.nv.gov/2011%20Results%20Web/05-28-11%20MMA.pdf
  2. ^ "Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings". Sherdog.com. August 22, 2012. 
  3. ^ "Brad Pickett vs. newcomer Demetrious Johnson official for WEC 48 prelims". MMAJunkie.com. Retrieved 2010-03-12. 
  4. ^ "Clint Godfrey vs. Demetrious Johnson set for WEC 51 preliminary card". mmajunkie.com. 08-03-2010. 
  5. ^ "Nick Pace replaces Clint Godfrey, faces Demetrious Johnson at WEC 51". mmajunkie.com. September 8, 2010. 
  6. ^ http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/1/Sherdogs-Top-10-Giant-Killers-41219
  7. ^ "UFC and WEC set to merge in 2011; events to air on Versus and Spike TV". mmajunkie.com. October 28, 2010. 
  8. ^ "Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto Signs With UFC; Debuts Against Demetrious Johnson In February". mmaweekly.com. December 10, 2010. 
  9. ^ ""Mighty Mouse" vs. Barao added to UFC 130". mmajunkie.com. March 12, 2011. 
  10. ^ "UFC 130: Miguel Torres vs Demetrious Johnson booked with Brad Pickett injured". mmamania.com. April 21, 2011. 
  11. ^ "Champ Dominick Cruz defends title against Demetrious Johnson at UFC on Versus 6". mmajunkie.com. July 22, 2011. 
  12. ^ Damon Martin (November 21, 2011). "Demetrious Johnson vs. Eddie Wineland In the Works for UFC on Fox 2". mmaweekly.com. Retrieved November 21, 2011. 
  13. ^ "UFC adds flyweights: Johnson vs. McCall, Benavidez vs. Urushitani at UFC on FX 2". mmajunkie.com. December 11, 2011. 
  14. ^ "UFC on FX 2 Main Card Results". UFC.com. March 3, 2012. 
  15. ^ "Breaking news: Demetrious Johnson vs Ian McCall result overturned, majority draw requires rematch". mmamania.com. March 3, 2012. 
  16. ^ "Johnson-McCall rematch slated for UFC on FX 3". mmajunkie.com. March 20, 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2012. 
  17. ^ "Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson to headline UFC on FOX 6". bloodyelbow.com. November 6, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2012. .
  18. ^ "Demetrious Johnson defends UFC flyweight title vs. John Moraga at TUF 17 Finale". mmajunkie.com. February 11, 2013. 
  19. ^ Staff (2013-02-26). "Demetrious Johnson injured, title fight with John Moraga off TUF 17 Finale". MMA Junkie. Retrieved 2013-02-26. 
  20. ^ "Champ Johnson vs. Moraga headlines UFC on FOX 8". mmajunkie.com. April 24, 2013. 
  21. ^ http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/1/No-Stranger-to-Adversity-35960

External links [edit]

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Demetrious_Johnson_(fighter)&oldid=556382605"